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abolition-usa-digest      Thursday, May 20 1999      Volume 01 : Number 131




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Date: Thu, 20 May 1999 21:56:34 EDT
From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re: Report on New Yugoslavia Peace Coalition

In a message dated 5/20/99 8:05:07 PM Eastern Daylight Time,=20
[e-mail] writes:

<< Subj:=09 Report on New Yugoslavia Peace Coalition
 Date:=095/20/99 8:05:07 PM Eastern Daylight Time
 From:=[e-mail] (Carol Moore)
 To:=[e-mail] (Peace list from)
=20
 Report on National Coalition for Peace in Yugoslavia Press Conference
 and Meeting May 20, 1999
=20
 **Big News** Civil Disobedience at White House Planned June 3=96see
 below**
=20
 The coalition was formed earlier this month by leaders of major U.S.
 peace organizations, including the American Friends Service Committee,
 Fellowship of Reconciliation, Pax Christi, Peace Action, War Resisters
 League, Women's Action for New Directions, and the Women's International
 League for Peace & Freedom. (Plus others, did not get whole list. I
 don=92t think there is a web page yet with all these details.)
=20
 The coalition issued an =93appeal for peace=94which:
 **called for end to bombing as prerequisite for peace process to begin
 **an immediate ceasefire
 **condemned all atrocities
 **encouraged all efforts made in good faith toward a diplomatic
 solution, as well as nonviolent alternatives
 **supports return of OSCE monitors and truly international peacekeeping
 operation that will monitor activities of Serb military and KLA.
=20
 PRESS CONFERENCE At National Press Club
 Speakers included:
 Representative Dennis Kucinich
 Representative Barbara Lee
 (Senator John McCain, who supports invading Yugoslavia and was speaking
 at a National Press Club function stuck his head in.)
 Reps. of American Friends, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Veterans for
 Peace. Moderator Gordon Clark of Peace Action, Sladjana Dankovic, a
 Serbian progressive and peace activist, and Chris Ney of War Resisters
 League were particularly effective, IMHO.
=20
 Actions announced:
 Ongoing Bridge of Light actions around the country
 May21-22 coordinated actions around the country
 June 5th March
 June 12-Demo vs. Clinton in Chicago
 June 18-Demo vs. Albright in Chicago
 July 24th=96National Action in DC if bombing has not stopped
=20
 Reporters questions: (there weren=92t many representatives of press; they
 were looking for =93big news=94 and not just announcement of a coalition)
 **Mr. Kempster of the Los Angeles Times asked (rather abrasively) what
 is your solution for ethnic cleansing and where were the =93peaceful
 Serbs=94 last fall during the negotiation period?  He was offered a range
 of answers, which boiled down to: the bombing greatly escalated the
 Serbian expulsions and killings, plus Albanians are fleeing NATO bombs;
 and the press ignored the  Serbian and Albanian peacemakers in favor of
 the extremist Serb government and the KLA;  OSCE was there and very
 successful, but press ignored them cause not =93sexy.=94
 **A Reporter from a Religious publication asked (also somewhat
 abrasively): your groups are all Christians, why should we listen to you
 instead of Jewish groups who experienced the Holocaust?  Gordon Clark of
 Peace Action (who identified himself as being Jewish) gave a spirited
 and definitive response: Not everyone is Hitler and not every situation
 is the Holocaust.  It=92s a misplaced analogy.  You can=92t say that only
 Jewish people can have an opinion on the US going to war in this or
 similar situations.  Others pointed out that the Jewish Peace Fellowship
 was against the War and that various religious views and secular groups
 were involved in the coalition.
=20
 LUNCH MEETING
=20
 Issue: how to work with Serb groups and the issue of nationalism is
 something that should be discussed in smaller group situation with
 representatives of peace groups and Serbians.  Also, Albanian peace
 people should be invited to join.
=20
 Endorsements: there will be levels of endorsement for Coalition for
 Peace in Yugoslavia: national, regional and local, to give everyone a
 chance to endorse.  Must only agree with the Appeal for Peace.
=20
 Civil Disobedience: A lot of Quakers and others are itching to get
 arrested so we decided to do a civil disobedience at the White House on
 June 3, the same day a big C.D. is being organized at the UN.  Peace
 groups will write letters to Clinton before hand asking for an audience;
 because he will refuse, we will go to White House and get arrested.
=20
 July 24th: while it is hoped the bombing will be done by then, we must
 in the meantime build a coalition to do a Washington action that day.
=20
 Advertising Campaign: a proposal will be drawn up to raise money for an
 advertising campaign on local cable television stations.
=20
 It was a great day for peace and I hope we can all plug in an support
 the coalition.
 Peace Action is the main contact at this moment, including for the civil
 disobedience.
 Peace Action, 1819 H St., NW #420, Washington, DC 20006.
 [phone]
 http://www.peace-action.org/
=20
 Carol Moore in D.C.
 Http://www.kreative.net/carolmoore/C&C-news.html
=20
 =3D=3D >>

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